Goleta Entrepreneurial Magnet Kicks off Summer Accelerator – Invites Community to Demo Day

The Goleta Entrepreneurial Magnet (GEM) is excited to announce the G2 Summer Accelerator for local startups. The seven-week program, which kicked off on June 27th, is designed to help teams of entrepreneurs successfully launch and run their startups. The program includes weekly curriculum on a variety of startup issues, including market validation, selling strategies, raising capital, developing intellectual property, and scaling a new business. In addition, there are a series of roundtables and social events providing opportunities for the startups to build their business networks.

GEM congratulates DermaChill, Dog Spot, EV Match, SoundCrutch, Urbavore, and Vibe on their acceptance into the accelerator. DermaChill, EV Match and Vibe were formed in UCSB’s New Venture Competition, Dog Spot and SoundCrutch came from the Santa Barbara City College, and Urbavore was started by graduates of UC Berkeley and the Middlebury Institute of International Studies. More information on the teams can be found below.

A Demo Day showcasing these businesses will be held on Tuesday, August 9th from 5:00-7:30 p.m. at Bacara Resort and Spa. Each team will make a formal investor-like presentation, followed by a reception and fair where the teams will field questions and demonstrate their products and services. For more information, please visit goletaentrepreneurs.com.

Dave Adornetto, Executive Director of GEM and the G2 Accelerator, stated, “ we are grateful for the financial support from our community to be able to offer this program, as well as the time invested by several advisors that helped to develop the program and who assist in mentoring the teams. We look forward to recognizing all of these contributions at the G2 Demo Day.”

The Goleta Entrepreneurial Magnet (GEM) is a partnership between the City of Goleta, UC Santa Barbara and the Goleta Valley Chamber of Commerce. The primary focus of GEM is to provide resources to early entrepreneurs to help them develop their businesses and improve their opportunity for success. GEM opened it’s first small-business incubator space located at 600 Pine Avenue in Old Town Goleta in 2014.

Teams accepted into the 2016 G2 Summer Accelerator:

DermaChill is working on a handheld cooling-system device that alleviates itchiness associated with eczema and other skin conditions. The Dermachill solution provides relief in a portable, cost-effective and healthy manner.

Dog Spot has developed an innovative dog bed that enables owners to safely secure their pet without restricting freedom of movement. Dog Spot provides a humane way to prevent destructive canine behavior that may result in home damage and pet injuries.

EV Match is creating on an online marketplace that connects electric vehicle (EV) owners in need of reliable EV charging with local owners of residential EV charging infrastructure.

SoundCrutch has designed a smartphone attachment to redirect sound from a rear-facing speaker, eliminating the need for excess volume to uphold the user’s privacy.

Urbavore is developing an indoor agricultural appliance that allows urban residents to connect with the food system in a fun, affordable, and meaningful way.

Vibe is empowering the visually impaired with a new way to navigate their surroundings. Their device consists of a wearable ultrasonic sensor, which translates information about the environment to the user through unique vibration patterns.